Sunday, August 10, 2014

You've asked, "What exactly is a first look? Well, simply put – it’s when the bride & groom spend some time before the ceremony in a private moment where we get to capture the intimacy of them seeing each other for the first time on their wedding day. Yes, we are breaking tradition, actually, I like to call it, "starting a new tradition"! For those clients with a fast paced wedding timeline, it may be the best option for photography! Typically, the photographers will scout out a spot that is remote and away from guests. Then we’ll lead the groom over to wait anxiously for his bride to tap him on the shoulder so he can turn around and see her in her glorious beauty, share true & intimate emotions, and admire who he is about to walk down the aisle with.

During a recent wedding this summer, I was shooting solo, yep, no assistant at this wedding and to make it more challenging, the sky opened up and rained. We were limited to shooting inside on a stairwell, which was the main entrance to the golf club. I had to work around arriving and exiting golf patrons and hope the guests would follow directions and stay out of the way for our shooting. It worked and I was happy with the results! What follows is just a sampling of a few of the images. More images to be shown in the final blog about this beautiful New Jersey wedding.

There are some circumstances that truly call out for a first look, such as: *You have an evening ceremony and you want to use natural light to capture your important photos. *You have a tight wedding schedule and you need to do all of your group/family photos before the ceremony. Some photographers include the WHOLE wedding party in the first look session, whereas typically it is just the bride and groom portraits. * You want to have plenty of time to venture out for your bride/groom photos. * You don’t mind trying out this new tradition.

Not only does this make for some amazing memories & photos, but you get to share a moment together in the rush that can sometimes be your wedding day! Most couples say that their nervousness is completely gone afterwards, and that despite having seen each other before the ceremony, they still feel equally special when they walk down the aisle and see their bride/groom again. Why? Because both moments are completely different. Nothing can ever replace seeing your bride/groom at the end of the aisle, locking eyes for the first time and realizing that in a few minutes you will officially be a married couple!

The first look, on the contrary, is more of a moment spent together, in privacy, at a slow pace – in what otherwise might be the hustle and bustle of your busy wedding day. It’s a chance for you both to soak it all in and enjoy one another.

How is the first look session beneficial to photographers? It gives us the opportunity and the time to artistically plan photography work, whether if we are working with lighting (flash, studio, etc.) or natural lighting. We are not so rushed to quickly capture your moments, but have the time to devote directly to your images without worrying too much about a quickly paced timeline, providing our clients plan ample time in their schedule to accommodate for a first look session. We recommend 2-4 hours depending on the size of the wedding and if the client wants to also included the entire wedding party and understand that sometimes, it rains!

Photographers like to believe that our clients not only hired us to document their day, but because they love the art that we create in our photography and that they want that same style for their own wedding photos. At Glass Eyed Pony Photography, we strive to produce the best images possible as nothing brings us more joy that seeing our clients happy and in love with their images!

Images are memories captured, they last a lifetime and beyond! When you invest in great photography, you are investing in your memories!